Pieterburen Seal Sanctuary

When we first moved to Holland, I was terrified of driving on a daily basis.  The traffic rules are slightly different, and I was just plan scared that I would hit and injure a cyclist.  However, after the cold winter, and finally putting on "my big girl pants", I have been driving more and more here and feeling a bit more comfortable with it.  As a result, I volunteered to drive for Elizabeth's class field trip to The Seal Sanctuary in Pieterburen. (The school does not have a bus for field trips, and it relies on parent volunteers to drive groups of children to the field trip destination.)

I was lucky enough to have these three gorgeous ladies in my group for the day.:)

 Pieterburen Seal Sanctuary is a resuce and rehabilitation facility for two different species of seals : the common seal and the grey seal. The sanctuary is privately funded, and it rescues sick or injured seals from along the coast of the North Sea.  To read more about Pieterburen Seal Sacntuary, click here.

 The kids were excited at the possibilty of taking a selfie with a seal while the seals were swimming in the rehabilitation pool.:)

Waiting for an underwater glimpse of a seal.:)

seals in the rehab pool

 The seals in the picture below are all about a year old and rescued.  They had a disease called lungworm, and have been treated with a medication which makes them cough up the worms to get rid of them.  Some of them do not live to be released back into the wild, but a good number of them do. Their pool had just been cleaned out, and they were waiting to get back in.

Add caption

This seal was off by itself swimming in a different pool.  I noticed that there were no toys or anything for the seal to play with and one of the workers explained that they keep the seals as much in their natural habitat as possible and do not try to domesticate them at all so when they are released, they can survive in the sea again.  I think I already knew this, but seals are predators and can be very dangerous in the wild.  No one was allowed to pet the seals.

 One month old baby seal in the intensive are unit

 The baby seal above still has its white fur which is usually shed in the uterus of the mother before it is born.  When it is born with the white fur, it is difficult for it to swim as the white fur acts like a sponge and actually absorbs the water which makes it difficult for the baby to swim.  The workers here are taking care of it by feeding it and waiting until its new fur comes in.

another seal in the intensive care unit

Elizabeth's class.:)

 It was so interesting to learn about the different species of seals, and what the workers at the sanctuary do to help rehabilitate the seals to release them again.  Many of the seals that come to the sanctuary have been caught in ghost nets ( nets cut off of fishing boats and left to drift around in the oceans).  These nets can cause fatal injuries to th animals who are stuck in them.  In June, Elizabeth's class will have the opportunity to adopt a seal that has been rescued and sponsor it until it can be released into the sea again.  A few luck y students will be chosen to go along with their teacher to release the seal when it is fully healed.:) It was a great field trip to show these young learners about animal life and the fragility of it all.

I am glad I put my ' big girl" pants on and decided to drive for this field trip.:)

Doei!:)